Sand was drawn onto the ice during the winter, so that it could settle and furnish
    a better bottom for the bathers. Report of the Park Commission, 1905.

    Neighboring town photos for April -
    Forge Park station - Franklin.

    Above - A colonial according to the Milford
    Sunday News real estate section.

    Below - A colonial according to a book on
    early American life.

Hopedale in April 2014

Hopedale history ezine for April 1 - Gov. Eben Sumner Draper   

Ezine for April 15 -
Dogwood and Shuttles   

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    April 1 - My first paddle on Hopedale Pond this year. The edge was open up to
    about where the wood begin and after that it was pretty much all free of ice.

    April 1 - Here's another sign of warm
    weather - a crocus popping up near the
    corner of Hopedale and Social streets.
Council on Aging slice of the town budget.

    A comfort station here is in process of erection.
    Report of the Park Commissioners, 1912

Peering into the Draper plant.

Town Park - April 3

How it once looked in there.

Hopedale Pond - ice nearly gone.

    And by April 4, it was gone. At least it was gone according to
    the old Draper standard - no ice in sight from the Freedom
    Street end of the shop. The last time ice lasted into April
    was 2005 when it was gone by the second. Click here for
    more on iceout dates.

Back at it at the Country Club - April 4.

    Thanks to my son, DJ, for these
    pictures of the Engine33/Ladder
    15 station that he took a few
    days after the Boston fire of
    March 26 in which two of the
    firemen from this station died.

Sunday in the park - April 6.

    Rita Sullivan, center, in black, was honored at the senior center at the Community House
    on April 9 with a presentation of the Boston Post cane. In a tradition started by the Boston
    Post in 1909, the cane is given to a town's oldest resident. Rita will turn 100 in June.

                                       Boston Post Cane Tradition

    In 1909, under the savvy ownership of Edwin A. Grozier, the Boston Post engaged in its
    most famous publicity stunt. The paper had several hundred ornate, gold-tipped canes
    made and contacted the selectmen in New England's largest towns. The Boston Post
    Canes were given to the selectmen and presented in a ceremony to the town's oldest
    living man. The custom was expanded to include a community's oldest woman in 1930.
    Many towns in New England still carry on the Boston Post cane tradition with the original
    canes they were awarded in 1909. Wikipedia

    Bancroft Library girls' knitting group and Atria-Draper
    Place knitters get together at Draper Place - April 7.

Town Park - April 11.

Waiting to run for the Easter eggs - April 12.

The Crossways - 105 Adin Street

Click here to see Helene at her "Lilliputian wedding" twelve years earlier

    G& U track work near the Sacred Heart Church parking lot. As you can see,
    unlike the work done on the section between Hopedale and Upton, here
    they've removed the existing tracks and will be totally replacing  them.
    Raising the often-hit bridge was the rumor I heard as the reason

    A little snow on the ground to wake
    up to on the morning of April 16.

    Wow, that's a lot of ants. I wonder if they ever say,
    in ant language of course, "Hey, quit yer shovin'."

    Not a common plant pairing - daffodils and skunk cabbage, along
    the Parlkands entrance road from Dutcher Street - April 21.

    Rustic Bridge ripple reflections.

    The Boston Marathon in Natick - Click
    here for some stills and video.

    Another day, looking upstream this time..
    Reflections under the bridge on April 25.